WASHINGTON (Gray DC) – After last week’s deadly midair collision between an American Airlines regional jet and an army helicopter, crews have begun the process of removing the plane wreckage from the Potomac River, near Washington, D.C.
The first pieces of the plane were removed from the river throughout the day on Monday. They included a jet engine, the wing and several parts of the fuselage of what was American Airlines flight 5342.
Each piece was hoisted out of the water using a crane and loaded on to a barge. They will be taken to a hanger for analysis.
Officials said on Monday that crews are continuing to recover the remains of some of the victims of the crash. So far, they have recovered 55 of the 67 people who were killed on both aircraft.
“Our process is committed to the dignified process for recovery of the remains for personnel and passengers of the flight,” said Col. Francis Pera of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Salvage operation for the plane are expected to take three days.
After recovering the jet, the US Army Corps of Engineers will work to remove the helicopter, which is expected to happen later this week.
Officials stressed again on Monday that it is far too soon to know the cause of the crash.
“Let’s just wait until the NTSB investigation. I know we all want answers. We want to know also, but all that should come out and we should have a better picture once the cockpit data recorders are analyzed,” said Col. Mark Ott, Deputy Director of Aviation for the Army.
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